Please let me tell you a story about a Buddha's foremost disciple (Etadagga Bhikkhu), Arahant 'Dabba Mallaputta', who was famous for his superb preparation of beds and seats(senaasana).***************

Dabba-Mallaputta Thera[Translated from Thai Dhammapada Book by Dr.Tep Sastri]

He was a son of King MullaRaja who ruled the land of Mulla. At the time his mother was about to give birth to him, she suddenly turned sick and died. The King ordered a cremation for her, and so the caretaker put the Queen's body on a big pile of woods and lit the fire. While the fire was burning, the corpse's belly split open and a baby boy rolled down to a safe landing on a pile of woods nearby. Seeing that the baby was alive and in good condition, the caretaker then brought him to his royal grandmother, who named him "Dabba" (meaning 'pile of wood').

By the time he turned seven, the prince's grandmother took him to the Monastery to listen to a Buddha's Dhamma. He was so fascinated by Buddha's majesty that he begged his grandma to allow him to join the Monk Community. Following the permission of the prince's grandmother's, the Buddha told a bhikkhu to teach the boy the five body-foulness as his first meditation subject (Kammatthana) and ordained the boy as a Novice (samanera). The Novice Dabba Mullaputta did not waste anytime at all; he started developing the Kammatthana right away, while his head was being shaped. He continued to concentrate deeply on the meditation subject all the time, and attained the Arahantship right at the time the last lock of his hair fell to the ground. The fruits of his arahantship were the Four Discriminating Knowledges (Patisambhida) and the Six Supranormal Powers (Abhi~n~na).-----

***Continue [Wisdom Library]

He returned with the Buddha to Rájagaha where, with the Buddha's sanction, and wishing to be of service to the Order, he took upon himself the task of appointing night's-lodgings to travelling monks and of directing them to meals. He performed his duties most diligently and with great intelligence, and his fame spread far and wide. Monks coming from afar, wishing to witness his skill, would deliberately arrive late and ask for lodgings in some place remote from Rájagaha; Dabba would "burst into flame" and walk ahead of them, with his finger burning to light them on the way. It was the sight of Dabba on one of these journeys which led to a slave-woman, Punná, being visited by the Buddha, resulting in her becoming a Sotápanna.

It once happened that meals were allotted by Dabba to the Mettiya-Bhummajaká at the house of a rich man, who, discovering their identity, gave orders that they were to be fed anyhow. The Mettiya-Bhummajaká were greatly offended, and believing that Dabba had intended to slight them, induced one of their partisans, Mettiyá, to accuse Dabba of having seduced her. The charge was investigated,Mettiyá was expelled, and Dabba's fame increased. The Mettiya-Bhummajaká persuaded the Licchavi, Vaddha, to make a similar charge against Dabba regarding his wife. The Tandulanáli Játaka mentions another dispute, where Láludáyi charges Dabba with not performing his duties conscientiously.Thereupon Láludáyi was appointed to the task, but proved a failure.

Dabba was given the rank of chief of those who appointed lodgings (senásanapaññápakánam) and was given the upasampadá ordination when only seven years old. He was called Dabba because he was said to be born of his mother while she was being burnt in the funeral pyre; when the flames were extinguished, the child was found lying on one of the posts of the pyre (dabbatthambhe).

Dabba evidently died young. The Udana contains an account of his death. One day, returning from his alms rounds in Rájagaha, he saw that he had but a short while yet to live. He went, therefore, to the Buddha and, with his leave, showed various iddhi-powers and passed away.-----

Dabba Mallaputta's past lives

He was a setthiputta in Hamsavatí in the time of Padumuttara Buddha, and it was then that he conceived the desire for the rank of chief apportioner of lodgings. One hundred and three times he became king among devas and one hundred and five times king of men. In the time of Vipassí Buddha he spoke calumny about an arahant Thera, hence the conspiracy against him by the Mettiya-Bhummajaká. In the time of Kassapa Buddha he, with six others, went to the top of a hill, determined not to return till they had accomplished their purpose, but five of them died before this came to pass. The other four were Pukkusáti, Sabhiya, Báhiya, and Kumárakassapa .

While residing at the Jetavana monastery, the Buddha uttered Verse (93) of this book, with reference to Thera Anuruddha.

Thera Anuruddha was one day looking for some discarded pieces of cloth in a rubbish heap to make into a robe as his old robe was getting soiled and torn. Jalini, his wife of a previous existence, who was now in a deva world, saw him. Knowing that he was looking for some cloth, she took three pieces of good deva material and put them in the rubbish heap, making them barely visible. The thera found the pieces of cloth and took them to the monastery. While he was making the robe, the Buddha arrived with his Chief Disciples and senior disciples and they also helped stitch the robe.

Meanwhile, Jalini, assuming the form of a young lady, came to the village and learnt about the arrival of the Buddha and his disciples and also how they were helping Thera Anuruddha. She urged the villagers to send good delicious food to the monastery and consequently there was more than enough for all. Other bhikkhus, seeing so much surplus, put the blame on the thera and said, "Thera Anuruddha should have asked his relatives and lay disciples to send just enough food; may be, he just wanted to show off that he had so many devotees." To those bhikkhus, the Buddha said, "Bhikkhus, do not think my son Anuruddha has asked his relatives and lay disciples to send rice gruel and other foods. My son the thera did not ask for anything; arahats do not talk about such things like food and clothing. The excessive amount of food brought to the monastery this morning was due to the promptings of a celestial being and not of a man."

Then the Buddha spoke in verse as follows:

Verse 93: The arahat is free from moral intoxicants (asavas); he is not attached to food. He has as his object liberation from existence, i.e., Nibbana which is Void and Signless. His path, like that of birds in the air, cannot be traced.